Thread: Knife honing

IMHO, if the knife is sharp (as in, the two sides meet at a single plane, without burrs) it will perform well. The need for higher grits only comes into play when you want to have a smoother slicing action. For instance, a dedicated slicing knife, like a filet knife or a Yanagi, would benefit from the higher polish more so than a clever or an all pupose chef's knife would (though the finer edge is nice on all knives, and not that hard to maintain). A 4k edge will grab the material a little better than a 1k edge, which is better than a 220 edge, but unless you are a professional chef, meat packer, lumberjack, or otherwise professional knife wielder, the difference is a matter of choice.

The bottom line is that the knife is sharp, from there it's just a luxury as to how fine you make it.

Originally Posted by Russel Baldridge

IMHO, if the knife is sharp (as in, the two sides meet at a single plane, without burrs) it will perform well. .

That's true -- but who on this forum would be satisfied with good enough?

Seriously though, polishing gives you a better stronger and longer lasting edge. It gets rid of the microserrations which you get at lower grits. Think of it this way: you make a rock wall with serious gaps between it going from top to bottom, and another which is perfectly even and interlaced. Which is easier to knock down?

As RB said, it really doesn't matter for most putterer in the kitchen, but it makes a great deal of difference if you have five sacks of root vegetables to brunoise before service. Not only does it make it go faster, but it requires less effort and the brunoise are cleaner. (Actually, for root vegetables, I'd throw on a quick double bevel -- which is another thread for another day!)


Just my two cents, which is worth less today than yesterday!

cass

[QUOTE=Johnny J;262001]2. Is there any point in putting an 8K polish (or even a 1K polish) on a kitchen or work knife?[QUOTE]

I know this is a very old thread, but I thought that you would be interested to know that the Henckles/Zwilling knife company makes two diferent double sided stones: a regular 250/1000 and a "Henckles Twin Stone Pro" 3000/4000. So I am assuming that Henckles intends for thier knives to be sharpened using an 8000 stone. I have the 250/1000 and althoght I have no other stone to compare it to, it seems to be of good quality.

Here is a link. It has a better view than the one offered on the Henckles website.

Henckles Sharpening Stones Whet Stones

I've spent some time with Murray.

He uses a King 1K and 6K...that's it.
I've not watched his video but there are some things that are worth noting. He uses back and forward (sticker-off-the-stone) when using the 1K. It's on the 6K that he'll only "pull". It's at the last. Think of it as a paddle strop with 6K abrasive instead of 16-60K abrasive He'll deburr between the 1K and 6K or sometimes after. He's not a systems or number guy. Far from it. He basically does whatever he feels.

His method flat works. Period. For a kitchen knife I like the 6K (3micron?) edge of the King. If you start playing with this method go buy a 1k/6K combo stone, they're less than $30 if I remember. I can NOT get "his" edge off of my Naniwa SS. I've tried mutliple times. I think the key is in the differences between the 1K stones.

I come to find I like the 3micron diamond spray finish on most knives....but I'll often take it to 1micron for a knife that I know won't see much "sawing" motion work and just push slicing. It's my opinion that only the best steels benefit from going to .5 or .25 and even then it's a labor of love and more for the "owww" factor than actual function. (Chisels I take .25micron...as they are push-slicing machines...and my Japanese chisels have great 64HRC steel )

Lets see, to your questions:
1. On stones I will work both directions, it's how you end and "finish" the edge that makes any difference....all the stuff leading up to that is just material removal.

2. YES!!!! ...but not always, it's job-specific. Generally I wouldn't imagine NOT taking it to at least 3-5K.

3. Learn freehand. At least learn it well enough to can touch a blade up and bring it back several times before going back to some contraption/clamp/jig to reset the bevel.

4. Razors are polished and they perform a cutting motion I've mentioned as the "push-slice". They are highly polished for the reason. I high-polish razors, chisels and scalpel-like instruments. The more "sawing-slice" the edge will perform the rougher I leave the edge. Chainsaws have "teeth" that are measured in inches. Razors have "teeth" that are measured in sub-microns. They all have teeth, but there size should be determined by the task as hand.

I may not be the best. But I do knives and shears for money. I've spent as much time "playing" with different materials/methods/ideas for those tools as many on here have spent on razors, ask away.

There's no magic to Murray's method, just practice.

Should've checked the age of this thread, sorry.

Just a word on "contraptions" like the EdgePro: call it cheating if you like, but it's the only way I can get a *perfectly* even bevel all the way to the tip of a knife. An even bevel isn't necessary for cutting, but it sure looks pretty.

Originally Posted by wsfarrell

Just a word on "contraptions" like the EdgePro: call it cheating if you like, but it's the only way I can get a *perfectly* even bevel all the way to the tip of a knife. An even bevel isn't necessary for cutting, but it sure looks pretty.

I don't go the "purists" route of defaming anything that's not freehand. I have the edgepro and it, along with Ben it's designer, are first-class. What I do recommend is taking the time to, and beating the frustration of, learning to do freehand well enough that you can "touch up" the edges without relying on a contraption. Leave those for the heavy work of making pretty bevels or removing gouges in the edges.